MRA eyes water projects to aid in redevelopment
Martin Kidston
(Missoula Current) In an effort to streamline construction and save costs, the Missoula Redevelopment Agency this week approved a new partnership with Public Works and Mobility on certain projects within the city's urban renewal districts.
The agreement comes as MRA focuses on filling gaps in the city's water system to aid in redevelopment and bring more sidewalks to areas that are lacking.
“We can work more efficiency with Public Works to oversee infrastructure projects in urban renewal districts,” said Jil Dunn, a project manager with MRA. “We do water main projects and sidewalk infill projects in these districts. But partnering makes sense because they (Public Works) do this work all the time.”
Public Works and MRA both tackle water and sidewalk projects but, in the past, both agencies maintained separate agreements covering project oversight and construction services, among other things.
Thursday's agreement looks to simplify and streamline that process by removing redundancies. Public Works will now provide project management services on behalf of MRA. MRA in turn will pay Public Works a 2.5% reimbursement fee to cover the cost of its services.
“Public Works is well-versed in doing these kinds of projects. It didn't seem efficient having two different departments doing sidewalks and water,” said MRA director Ellen Buchanan. “We're shifting all the project management to Public Works for more efficient use of everyone's time. We can still drive what the projects are.”
MRA in recent years has helped fill large infrastructure gaps within the city's urban renewal districts. This week, under the new agreement, MRA signed a $91,000 service agreement with WGM Group to install a water main on two blocks of Kensington Avenue.
The project is focused in Urban Renewal District III and is intended to bring the area's fire capacity up to modern standards and aid in the redevelopment of several properties.
“There's a lot that has had some interest over the years where the old Osaki restaurant was,” said Dunn. “That block doesn't have any water service to it at all. That's something that's required to start construction on that site.”
The district, which includes all of Midtown, has been eyed for its redevelopment potential. The city recently adopted the Midtown Master Plan and the area now has leadership similar to the Missoula Downtown Association.
Redevelopment of underutilized properties with the Midtown district is high on the list of goals.
“That restaurant has been vacant,” said Dunn. “We're hoping with the water main that it'll provide adequate fire suppression capacity for new construction and remove that barrier to redevelopment.”
Public Works also has been eyeing the need for modern services on both Kensingon and Burlington avenues. The latter is set for a similar project in the coming years. Both streets hold high redevelopment potential.
“We've got a hole in the water system and a couple hydrants in the area don't meet current standards of 1,500 gallons per minute for two hours that fire would generally require for redevelopment,” said Andy Schultz, a utility engineer with the city. “With this project, we'll be able to fill in that gap and provide services for some of these underserved properties.”
Those behind the Midtown Master Plan are also looking to market the district for its redevelopment potential. An adequate water supply is needed to do that.
That could include 10 acres behind Bob Wards, which also lacks service. The city is likely to purchase the property and install the necessary infrastructure to aid redevelopment with a private partner.
“They are working toward identifying some key projects that will advance implementation of the (master) plan. They will likely seek some (tax increment) funding once strategic projects are identified,” said Buchanan.